Hacker News: Gabriel54

New comment by Gabriel54 in "Harvard President Faults Faculty Activism for Chilling Debate and Free Speech"

Gabriel54 — Mon, 05 Jan 2026 00:53:16 +0000

There is a big difference between professors being "free" to publish and express their views on a subject, and teaching that same subject in such a way that their views are presented as the only acceptable views on that subject.

New comment by Gabriel54 in "Why does Swiss cheese have holes?"

Gabriel54 — Mon, 03 Nov 2025 02:33:07 +0000

It's an observation, not a value judgement. Try finding a fresh loaf of bread in the average American suburb.

New comment by Gabriel54 in "60k kids have avoided peanut allergies due to 2015 advice, study finds"

Gabriel54 — Tue, 21 Oct 2025 21:10:03 +0000

I have never been asked such a thing, in the US or elsewhere. It would be on the customer to inform the staff of any allergies.

New comment by Gabriel54 in "Gifted children are special needs children"

Gabriel54 — Tue, 07 Oct 2025 14:53:57 +0000

> You should also remove any students from classrooms whom routinely distract from others' learning.

A good idea but not practically possible in any district, unfortunately.

New comment by Gabriel54 in "If the University of Chicago won't defend the humanities, who will?"

Gabriel54 — Tue, 07 Oct 2025 01:04:14 +0000

> The stuff Jordan says about there being some value in the classics is good. Some of his stuff about meaning is good. Little to none of it is original.

I don't think he ever claimed that these ideas were original?

> He’s also a raving misogynist. I have two daughters. He can fuck right off with that shit.

I feel like this is quite an extraordinary accusation. The tone of your comment reminds me of his interview with Kathy Newman. Everything he said that had even the smallest nuance was twisted into something else. What specifically did he say that makes you thing he is a misogynist?

New comment by Gabriel54 in "If the University of Chicago won't defend the humanities, who will?"

Gabriel54 — Sun, 05 Oct 2025 23:03:25 +0000

I wonder, have you personally been in a university environment recently? Within the past ten or fifteen years? I ask because, as someone who attended a supposedly "good" university in the USA, before going I had an interest in the humanities but was quickly discouraged by the number of individuals who seemed to be possessed by propaganda. I mentioned in another comment, for example, that I saw another student have as their desktop background a photo of Mao and the cultural revolution. So this is the backdrop against which Jordan Peterson is saying, you know, there actually are Western intellectuals worth reading and listening to and thinking about. And yes, on a personal level, I did get to read some of those writers you mentioned. It did not surprise me that they turn out to be much deeper than Jordon Peterson himself, but I don't think he ever claimed to be a revolutionary thinker? I consider him more of an evangelist than anything else. How many intellectuals can we say have truly had an impact with their ideas? The number is small. I think the reason Jordan Peterson suddenly became a phenomenon is because he was at least brave enough to call out ridiculousness when he saw it (at least at the very beginning of his celebrity, I cannot speak for his recent comments because I stopped paying attention once he started going into politics).

New comment by Gabriel54 in "If the University of Chicago won't defend the humanities, who will?"

Gabriel54 — Sun, 05 Oct 2025 22:51:33 +0000

At a pre-protest meeting of a cause I wanted to support, I noticed that the organizer had on their desktop background a kind of propagandistic poster of Mao leading the cultural revolution. Keep in mind, this is in the USA. I'm no expert in world history by any means, but the level of ignorance is astounding.

New comment by Gabriel54 in "'We need the smartest people': Nvidia, OpenAI CEOs react to H-1B visa fee"

Gabriel54 — Wed, 24 Sep 2025 15:53:57 +0000

From the EB-1 page on USCIS [0], under "Extraordinary Ability" category:

> You must be able to demonstrate extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics through sustained national or international acclaim.

> You must meet at least 3 of the 10 criteria* below, or provide evidence of a one-time achievement (i.e., Pulitzer, Oscar, Olympic Medal) as well as evidence showing that you will be continuing to work in the area of your expertise. No offer of employment or labor certification is required.

There is also a category for professors and researchers. In this category one must have an offer of employment. No labor certification is required.

[0] https://www.uscis.gov/working-in-the-united-states/permanent...

New comment by Gabriel54 in "'We need the smartest people': Nvidia, OpenAI CEOs react to H-1B visa fee"

Gabriel54 — Wed, 24 Sep 2025 14:49:30 +0000

On the link above, there is a link to "Table VI (Part II) Preference Visas Issued Fiscal Year 2024". It is broken down by the consulate/embassy issuing the visa. The grand totals have about 5000, 10000, 16000 EB-1/2/3 visas issued globally, respectively. What am I misunderstanding?

New comment by Gabriel54 in "'We need the smartest people': Nvidia, OpenAI CEOs react to H-1B visa fee"

Gabriel54 — Tue, 23 Sep 2025 17:56:02 +0000

I am looking here [0] and I see that almost 20,000 O visas were issued at foreign posts in 2024, and it looks like several thousand E visas in the first priority category were issued. I agree with you that for most people, currently, the way it works is that they get an H1-B and then wait for their turn to apply for EB-1 (if they are from a country subject to quotas), but it is incorrect to say that consulates do not issues O or EB-1 visas. Why this is the case I have no idea, perhaps it is easier for companies to file for H1-B?

[0] https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/legal/visa-law0/v...

New comment by Gabriel54 in "'We need the smartest people': Nvidia, OpenAI CEOs react to H-1B visa fee"

Gabriel54 — Tue, 23 Sep 2025 03:40:23 +0000

As many others have pointed out there remain EB-1 visas and O category visas. In particular the O visas (for "extraordinary ability") are not subject to any nationality quotas. If these companies are serious about hiring the "smartest people", why would they not fall into these categories? Just for fun, here is an example of a teenager who recently got an O-1 visa as a software engineer [0]. Surely the folks applying to OpenAI, Nvidia, etc. would have similar qualifications?

[0] https://x.com/Mokshit06/status/1955377782902624410

New comment by Gabriel54 in "'We need the smartest people': Nvidia, OpenAI CEOs react to H-1B visa fee"

Gabriel54 — Tue, 23 Sep 2025 03:32:27 +0000

Where are you getting this information from? EB-1/2/3 are clearly visas issued to people [0]. It is true that many people may adjust status to EB-1/2/3 while already in the US in another status, but they are certainly visas still available to people. As I understand, due to the quota system it can be very difficult for folks born in certain countries to receive them (due to quotas) and they end up waiting for many years.

[0] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EB-1_visa

New comment by Gabriel54 in "Neovim Pack"

Gabriel54 — Thu, 04 Sep 2025 15:20:58 +0000

I've been very happy with Paq [1] which is essentially a lightweight wrapper around git pull.

[1] https://github.com/savq/paq-nvim

New comment by Gabriel54 in "Unfortunately, the ICEBlock app is activism theater"

Gabriel54 — Tue, 02 Sep 2025 14:01:49 +0000

You said it very well. Personally I would even go so far as to say it is a manufactured crisis perpetuated by both parties for the benefit of the rich in this country.

New comment by Gabriel54 in "Unfortunately, the ICEBlock app is activism theater"

Gabriel54 — Tue, 02 Sep 2025 13:58:20 +0000

> I would rather have anarchy than rule of law enforced by bandits.

This indicates to me that you have no idea how desperate people become in a failed state, in the absence of law and order.

New comment by Gabriel54 in "Unfortunately, the ICEBlock app is activism theater"

Gabriel54 — Tue, 02 Sep 2025 13:21:11 +0000

I think it is a stretch to conclude that because someone voted for Trump, they support all of his immigration policies. Some of the policies perhaps, but I think it is a matter of degree. Many viewed Biden (rightly or wrongly) as not enforcing the law at all.

New comment by Gabriel54 in "Unfortunately, the ICEBlock app is activism theater"

Gabriel54 — Tue, 02 Sep 2025 13:18:42 +0000

So should we model our immigration system on that of those countries? My point is that we are a country of laws, based on rule of law, and therefore must start by impartially enforcing the laws we have. Syria and Iraq (to name two of your examples) are certainly not what I would describe as countries based on rule of law. As you yourself point out, in Iraq the police liked you, so they let you go. I do not want to see such a system in the USA.

New comment by Gabriel54 in "Unfortunately, the ICEBlock app is activism theater"

Gabriel54 — Tue, 02 Sep 2025 13:12:06 +0000

I don't disagree with anything you are saying. No one should be deported to prison camps in third countries (a la CECOT). Immigration should be made easier. Executives should face more serious consequences for hiring undocumented workers. I agree. My basic premise starts from the fact that, as a country of laws, we must first enforce the laws that we have, then create new laws that reflect the society we want. Currently we have laws subject to haphazard enforcement and the color (blue or red) of the party in the White House.

New comment by Gabriel54 in "Unfortunately, the ICEBlock app is activism theater"

Gabriel54 — Tue, 02 Sep 2025 13:03:49 +0000

Governments have a right to detain and deport individuals in the country without documentation. The fact that ICE resorts to the tactics we are describing is unfortunate but necessary because many cities and states refuse to cooperate with federal authorities regarding immigration. These operations of ICE, generally speaking, are legal. (I say "generally speaking" because I cannot speak for every action of every ICE agent in the USA). You may find it distasteful or disagreeable, but it is within the purview of the federal government to enforce federal immigration laws.

New comment by Gabriel54 in "Unfortunately, the ICEBlock app is activism theater"

Gabriel54 — Tue, 02 Sep 2025 12:51:14 +0000

I agree, I think this situation is uniquely American, and yes, this is exactly separation of powers (federal vs. state) playing out. I also agree with you that neither side, given more authority, would produce a better outcome. It is my personal observation that many on the left seem to believe that there should not be a border, and that many on the right are clearly xenophobic. The answer is somewhere in the middle but unfortunately that is not what wins votes.